1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to pharmaceutical compositions for enhancement of immunity or treatment of bacterial infections, containing lysophosphatidylcholine or analogs thereof and antibiotics, as active ingredients; a method for enhancement of immunity or treatment of bacterial infections, including dosing the composition; and a kit for enhancement of immunity or treatment of bacterial infections, containing the composition.
2. Description of the Related Art
Bacterial infections are diseases caused by bacteria or viruses which invade and live in blood, body fluid, and tissues, and become a major threat to humans due to a lack of development of new antibiotics and an increase in antibiotic-resistant microorganisms. The bacterial infections are peritonitis, pneumonia, osteomyelitis, cellulitis, meningitis, nephritis, enteritis, gastritis, esophagitis, duodenitis, colitis, and sepsis. The bacterial infections may cause a neutropenic fever in which the immune system does not properly respond to infection or may be accompanied by a fever without a reduction of neutrophils against infection when the immune system is inhibited (for example, in patients with immunodeficient disease such as AIDS, or with immunosuppressant treatment). The bacterial infections become increasingly difficult to treat due to the increased expression of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
Sepsis is a major cause of death in intensive care units, accounting for over 200,000 deaths per year in the United States alone [Hoyert et al., 1994]. Increasing evidence suggests that sepsis impairs immune function by inducing defects in innate immunity and excessive lymphocyte apoptosis. The resulting immunosuppression has been suggested to be a major contributing factor in sepsis-induced mortality. Accordingly, activation of macrophages with interferon-γ (IFN-γ) in septic patients, blockade of complement-induced neutrophil dysfunction and inhibition of lymphocyte apoptosis in animals with experimentally induced sepsis have all been reported to have beneficial effects [Yan et al., Therapeutic effects of lysophosphatidylcholine in experimental sepsis. Nat. Med. 10:161-167(2004)).
Lysophosphatidylcholine (LPC) is a major component of oxidized low-density lipoprotein. LPC has various stimulatory effects in many types of immune cells in vitro, including monocytes, macrophages, T lymphocytes and neutrophils, and the beneficial effects of LPC on the sepsis have been reported [Yan et al., 2004].
Throughout the entire specification, many papers and patent documents are referenced and their citations are represented. The disclosures of cited papers and patent documents are entirely incorporated by reference into the present specification, and the level of the technical field within which the present invention falls and details of the present invention are explained more clearly.